One of the smallest artifacts recovered during the latest dive expedition at the shipwreck presumed to be Queen Anne's Revenge is getting big attention. The circular, dime-sized piece has been resting on the ocean floor for 300 years, but early examination indicates it may be the first coin to come from the site believed to be the flagship of the pirate Blackbeard... QAR Conservation Field Supervisor Wendy Welsh said.. a coin weight with a bust of Queen Anne was recovered from the site during a 2006 dive but no actual coins. Shanna Daniel, assistant conservator at the QAR lab in...

As the credit crunch hits pensioners across the country one pair have hit the jackpot by finding buried treasure. Barrie Plasom and Dave Phillips The finders of a hoard of thousands of Roman coins agree with the words inscribed on them; 'happy times are here again'. The collection of bronze coins, which may be worth hundreds of thousands in sterling, were discovered in a field north of Newport Pagnell and have now been declared as treasure. It was discovered by a pair of experienced metal detectorists on ploughed farmland on December 1, 2006. An investigation into the find was concluded...

Thursday, 2pm - AN Iron Age coin depicting a warrior leader bearing an uncanny likeness to Grantham-born former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has been found just a few miles from her birth place. Metal detectorist David Baker was searching a muddy field near Grantham when he uncovered the 2,000-year-old silver coin. On one side was the head of a tribal leader or goddess that looked just like Margaret Thatcher. On its reverse was a celtic armed war horse - imagery associated with Lady Thatcher during her 1980s pomp. David, 40, said: "I'd gone out detecting for the day to get...

First we had Barack Obama's personal Presidential seal, and then Greek columns for a speech in a huge stadium. Now we have commemorative coins with Barry's face on them, in the manner of Roman emperors and European monarchs. It may be noted that, in the United States, the face of a living person is NEVER printed on a postage stamp or a coin. Nonetheless, the Democratic Party not only failed to protest such an action, it actually welcomed it. This underscores our position that the Obama campaign is nothing more than a personality cult, and a dangerous one, that appeals...

A company in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter is making commemorative coins for American presidential hopeful Barack Obama. ...When they got in touch with the Democrats the party jumped at the chance. And the coins have proved such a hit that locally produced versions have already been launched to compete with the UK originals. The coins show Senator Obama’s face, along with a picture of the White House and the legend “President of the United States of America”.

Dig at 19th-century tavern site reveals possible link to China COLONIE -- Digging through 200-year-old trash heaps isn't always glamorous. But a small Asian coin uncovered behind a 19th-century Latham tavern turned a routine archaeological survey into an international puzzle. The copper alloy coin was unearthed as archaeologists combed through the soil behind the old Ebenezer Hills Jr. house. The one-time way station on a busy turnpike between Albany and Schenectady (now Route 7) was the equivalent of a Thruway rest stop when the trip between the two cities could take a day. Last month, the Albany County Airport Authority...

A ROMAN coin unearthed by a Wrexham metal detecting enthusiast has been confirmed as one of the oldest ever found in Wales. Retired butcher Roy Page, 69, of Coedpoeth, found the detailed 2,000-year-old coin on a farm near St Asaph when he went on a search there with the Mold-based Historical Search Society earlier this year. Roy gave the tiny silver coin, which depicts two horses being driven by a man on a chariot, to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS), who have recently confirmed the specific date that it was made. It is believed to have been brought over some...

The horrific sectarian cleansing of much of Baghdad in 2006-2007 separated the warring parities. As a consequence of the surge, the sectarian cleansing slowed and has now basically stopped. It is not "complete" in the sense that there are still some Sunni neighborhoods (mostly in western Baghdad) and a few (somewhat) mixed areas elsewhere, but Baghdad has become a city of enclaves. Beyond the U.S. troop increase, the greater emphasis on population security, and the recruitment of local Sons of Iraq to patrol neighborhoods and man checkpoints, there is another ingredient to the fragile, Balkanized peace in Iraq's capital: concrete....

Sayles, a south Missouri coin collector and dealer, is suing the Washington bureaucracy. He insists its unprecedented decision to restrict imports of ancient coins of Cyprus is “a major offensive” against collectors like him.

US Air National Guard to trial Beechcraft AT-6 for counter-insurgency By Stephen Trimble The US Air National Guard has received special funds to stage a demonstration of the turboprop-powered Hawker Beechcraft AT-6 for the domestic security and counter-insurgency mission. Kansas-based Senator Sam Brownback earmarked $3 million for the ANG to demonstrate the capabilities of the AT-6, which is assembled in Wichita, Kansas. The AT-6 is among at least four contenders to fill an emerging role in US and foreign airborne inventories for a dedicated counter-insurgency aircraft. The US Air Force is conducting a competition for such an aircraft on behalf...

TRENTON, N.J. - An anonymous buyer has paid more than $30 million for a collection of rare U.S. prototype coins, some from the 1700s, that never went into circulation, according to the dealer that brokered the deal. ADVERTISEMENT The collection consists of about 1,000 coins that collectors refer to as pattern coins — trial designs that never went into production because the U.S. Mint chose other designs. "This collection is an incredible collection. ... These were some of the first coins ever, ever struck by the United States government," said Laura Sperber, a partner in Legend Numismatics of Lincroft, N.J.,...

Petraeus Helping Pick New GeneralsArmy Says Innovation Will Be Rewarded By Ann Scott Tyson Washington Post Staff Writer Saturday, November 17, 2007; Page A01 The Army has summoned the top U.S. commander in Iraq back to Washington to preside over a board that will pick some of the next generation of Army leaders, an unusual decision that officials say represents a vote of confidence in Gen. David H. Petraeus's conduct of the war, as well as the Army counterinsurgency doctrine he helped rewrite. The Army has long been criticized for rewarding conventional military thinking and experience in traditional combat operations,...

An archeologist claims to have found a 16th century European coin in a swamp on Australia’s east coast, raising new questions about whether Captain James Cook was beaten to the continent by the Spanish or Portuguese. The silver coin, which is inscribed with the date 1597, was discovered by a group led by amateur archeologist Greg Jefferys. A colleague was digging in the sand with a machete when he found the badly corroded coin on Sunday.It was buried a few inches below the ground in the middle of snake-infested Eighteen Mile Swamp on North Stradbroke Island, Queensland. If proved to...

David Kilcullen, who was the chief counterinsurgency adviser to General David Petraeus, has posted another item over at the Small Wars Journal. Kilcullen always makes for interesting reading, and he doesn't disappoint with this latest. Kilcullen offers some deep insight into al Qaeda's current troubles in Anbar--specifically, why it is that the terrorist groups Iraqi affiliate, AQI, failed to cement its relationship with the tribal sheiks in that region. The answer is surprisingly simple--AQI failed to abide by Rule #1: Bros before Hoes: Islam, of course, is a key identity marker when dealing with non-Muslim outsiders, but when all involved...

...whether we do it elegantly or with the grace of a drunken seal lion, we must prevail. The committed Islamists and - the much greater number of - their sympathizers still "on the fence" are circling like a hungry pack to see if we can. And it is not our cleverness or lack thereof which is of question in their minds at all.

Coin discovery thrills archaeologists Archaeologists monitoring some digging by the City of Oslo's waterworks department made a sensational discovery this week.Gunhild Høvik Hansen spotted the special coin while digging herself. PHOTO: ANNE-STINE JOHNSBRÅTEN The discovery was made while archaeologists were monitoring replacement of new waterlines in the oldest part of Oslo. PHOTO: ANNE-STINE JOHNSBRÅTEN The archaeologists have been following excavations done by city workers who are replacing underground water pipes in the oldest part of Oslo, called Gamlebyen. That's the neighbourhood east of today's downtown area where Oslo’s first known settlements were established more than a thousand years ago....

One type of warplane that is making a bit of a comeback is counter-insurgency (COIN) aircraft. One sign of this comeback is the U.S. Air Force seeking to find a COIN aircraft suitable for the Iraqi Air Force. This is the start of rebuilding the Iraqi Air Force, and helping Iraq defend itself, allowing the United States to withdraw. There are several COIN aircraft on the market, and sales have been brisk, although unpublicized. COIN aircraft have a lot in common. They are single-engine, propeller-driven aircraft. The top speed is pretty slow when compared to planes like the F-16, usually...

The Royal Canadian Mint unveiled awelcome addition to any piggy bank on Thursday -- a monstergold coin with a face value of $1-millionthat it says is the world's biggest, purest and highestdenomination coin. Weighing in at 100 kilograms, the limitededition coin easily dwarfs its closest rival, the 31 kg "Big Phil", which was made to honour the ViennaPhilharmonic Orchestra and has a face value of a mere $150,000. The Canadian mint introduced the mega-coin, which is thesize of an extra-large pizza, alongside the one-ounce goldbullion coins it is mass producing at its Ottawa plant. Originally designed to promote the new...

OTTAWA- The Royal Canadian Mint has unveiled the world's first 100 kilogram pure gold coin. Listed as 99.999 per cent pure gold bullion, the new pizza-size coin is mainly a promotional product to give the mint a higher international profile. The 100-kilogram coin was conceived as a showpiece to promote the mint's new line of 99.999 per cent pure one ounce Gold Maple Leaf bullion coins. That extra nine makes it slightly purer than the 99.99 per cent gold coins offered by competitors. After several interested buyers came forward, the mint decided to make a very limited quantity available for...

From BlackFive: Over at BlackFive, I posted a model for understanding COIN Theory. This came out of a discussion with a fellow at PACOM who was trying to explain all the various systems analysis/emergent theory/organic models that various genuises have come up with over the last few years. I think it captures what each of these has to say, but puts it into a single metaphor that you can visualize. That's what he needed, and it's probably useful for the rest of us also.

Scrap the Greenback!It's time to get rid of the dollar bill. By Christopher Bonanos So the United States is introducing dollar coins, again. Earlier this month, the Treasury put George Washington's face on a golden coin, the first in a limited run that will eventually include almost every American president. (Only presidents who have been dead two years will be depicted, so if Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and the Bushes are still healthy when their turns arrive, the series will end with the Gipper.) This is the government's fourth attempt to move American spenders from dollar bills to dollar coins,...

Find of Roman coin shows ancient Britons in a new light By Daily Telegraph Reporter Last Updated: 1:34am GMT 26/02/2007 Experts are excited about a rare coin unearthed by an amateur treasure hunter which could change the accepted ancient history of Britain. The silver denarius which dates back to the Roman Republic — before Julius Caesar made Rome an empire — was unearthed near Fowey in Cornwall. Dating from 146 BC, it shows how ancient Britons were trading with the Romans well before the country was conquered in AD 43. "It proves that there was a lot more going on...

Beginning this year, a new series of $1 coins will honor the presidents of the United States in the order that they served. We will continue honoring four presidents each year until at least 2016. Collectible versions of these coins will be sold in both proof and uncirculated conditions and in a variety of special collection sets. Additionally, each presidential spouse will be honored with a 24-karat gold coin.

<p>LONDON -- A couple of millennia after their steamy affair went scorching across the Roman Empire, Mark Antony and Cleopatra remain among history's most romanticized lovers. But in the looks department, they may both have left much to be desired.</p>

Coin shows Cleopatra's ugly truth The images of Antony and Cleopatra are less than flattering Antony and Cleopatra, one of history's most romantic couples, were not the great beauties that Hollywood would have us believe, academics have said. A study of a 2,000-year-old silver coin found the Egyptian queen, famously portrayed by Elizabeth Taylor, had a pointed chin, thin lips and sharp nose. Her Roman lover, played by Richard Burton, had bulging eyes, thick neck and a hook nose. The tiny coin was studied by experts at Newcastle University. The size of a modern 5p piece (18mm or 0.7in), the...

The myth that fighting insurgencies is futile may underlie much pessimism about the current war in Iraq. Professor Donald Stoker's article, "Insurgencies Rarely Win - And Iraq Won't Be Any Different (Maybe)," did thinking Americans a great favor by writing the historical truth: that insurgents are not invincible. The misconception that they are destined to win in war was, as the professor writes, born in the U.S.'s Vietnam fiasco. John Kennedy's and Lyndon Johnson's administrations purposely chose to focus national attention on the Viet Cong insurgents as the cause of the Southeast Asia war, rather than admitting that the true...

Can the coins jingling in your pocket trace your movements? The Defense Department is warning its American contractor employees about a new espionage threat seemingly straight from Hollywood: It discovered Canadian coins with tiny radio frequency transmitters hidden inside. In a U.S. government report, it said the mysterious coins were found planted on U.S. contractors with classified security clearances on at least three separate occasions between October 2005 and January 2006 as the contractors traveled through Canada. The U.S. report doesn't suggest who might be tracking American defense contractors or why. It also doesn't describe how the Pentagon discovered the...

Someone gave me a silver quarter in change today. Not one of those copper-steel things that LBJ brought us. A 1963 silver quarter-dollar. Made with real silver. A little checking on google shows that this coin is worth more than TWO 2006 paper dollars just because of its silver content. When I was a youngster that coin would have bought: More than a gallon of gasoline. More than one loaf of bread. More than one bottle of beer. Thanks for NOTHING LBJ (debased our coins.) Thanks for NOTHING Nixon (took our paper money off the gold standard, permanent inflation since...

Barre, Vt. — With the drop of a single coin into a Salvation Army holiday collection kettle, the group may have been enriched by as much as $14,000 (U.S.). The donated 1908 Indian head coin has a face value of $2.50, said Captain Louis Patrick. But it's worth at least at $250 and possibly as much as $14,000, according to a preliminary analysis. “I was shocked,” Patrick said. “I've heard of this happening in other places, but I've never actually seen it.” The coin was enclosed in a protective plastic case. “It was an incredibly generous thing to do,” Patrick...

Sunrise over Baghdad finds a maneuver battalion executing several missions. Two platoons are on patrol, one sweeping a main supply route for improvised explosive devices (IEDs), the other escorting "Team Trash"-a dump truck and bucket loader-through a poor Shi'a neighborhood. A third platoon is still at the brigade detention facility in-processing several insurgents captured the previous night, while a fourth escorts the battalion medical platoon for a medical outreach in one of the battalion's assigned neighborhoods. Meanwhile, the battalion commander and a company commander prepare to attend a neighborhood council meeting; the executive officer updates the agenda for the weekly...

(Sumter) When the coins come out of the cash drawer, they all sound the same. And when Lynn Moore picked up her change and walked out of a Sumter Bi-Lo last November, she had no reason to believe her coins were any different. Boy, was she wrong. “It's definitely not a penny," said Lynn. It wasn't until she emptied her change that she noticed. “I threw it in a vase right next to my kitchen table," said Lynn. She continued, "I dumped it out into my hand and noticed that one coin was very odd looking." For 10 months, she...

WASHINGTON - The golden buffalo, the legendary symbol of the American West, will soon roam again — this time as the nation's first pure gold coin. The U.S. Mint will start taking orders in the coming week for the coins. Officials believe they have found a winning combination that will appeal to nostalgia buffs and investors. The coin will be slightly larger and thicker than a Kennedy half dollar, will contain one ounce of gold and will be designated a $50 gold piece. The actual price will depend on the market price of an ounce of gold, plus markups. The...

Anglo-Saxon gold coin leaves British Museum out of pocket By Nigel Reynolds, Arts Correspondent (Filed: 09/02/2006) A gold coin lost 1,200 years ago on a river bank in Bedfordshire became the most expensive British coin when it was bought by the British Museum for £357,832 yesterday. A little smaller than a pound coin in diameter and much thinner, the glittering mancus, the value of 30 days' wages for a skilled Anglo-Saxon worker, now ranks among the museum's most valuable artefacts. Anglo-Saxon coin depicting Coenwulf, King of Mercia Experts described the coin as "the find of the last 100 years". But...

Lucky coin found in medieval ship The coin is inscribed in Latin and has a cross on one face A French silver coin has been found embedded in the keel of a medieval ship uncovered on the banks of the river Usk in Newport three years ago. The discovery of the 15th Century coin is being interpreted as a sign that the ship came originally from France. Experts believe the coin was new and was intended to be a good luck charm. Project leader Kate Hunter said a colleague was shaking when she found the coin. She said: "We all...

On 12 November 2005, Coalition and Iraqi forces demonstrated again the flexibility and agility so necessary for counterinsurgency (COIN) operations against a smart, adaptive foe. After concentrating large-scale operations for months in Ninewah and Al Anbar Provinces northwest and west of Baghdad, Coalition forces conducted a new, no-notice operation in Diyala Province, northeast of Baghdad. Named Operation Knockout, this successful action reinforced the tactics, techniques, and procedures needed to defeat the insurgents and terrorists in Iraq. Cordon and Search Operations The bread-and-butter offensive COIN operation in Iraq is the battalion and smaller unit cordon and search. From 2003 to 2004,...

Tomb of ancient coin collector unearthed www.chinaview.cn 2006-01-15 14:05:53 XI'AN, Jan. 15 (Xinhuanet) -- Archaeologists in northwest China's Shaanxi Province have discovered an ancient tomb, possibly of a coin collector, dating back more than 600 years. During a recent excavation at a Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) tomb in the suburb of Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi, archaeologists found over 150 coins of different dynasties, together with 60 ceramic utensils. Twenty kinds of coins were in circulation in the dynasties of Tang (618-907), Song (960-1279) and Jin (1115-1234), spanning about 600 years. They might have been collected by the owner of the tomb...

(If I'am reading this correctly Hillary Clinton will be appearing on a US coin) SEC. 103. FIRST SPOUSE BULLION COIN PROGRAM. Section 5112 of title 31, United States Code, as amended by section 102, is amended by adding at the end the following: `(o) First Spouse Bullion Coin Program- `(1) IN GENERAL- During the same period described in subsection (n), the Secretary shall issue bullion coins under this subsection that are emblematic of the spouse of each such President. `(2) SPECIFICATIONS- The coins issued under this subsection shall-- `(A) have the same diameter as the $1 coins described in subsection...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- New dollar coins featuring all 37 of the nation's dead presidents will begin rolling out of the U.S. Mint in 2007 under a bill Congress is sending to President Bush. Lawmakers hope the coins - and an accompanying $10 gold piece for collectors featuring former first ladies - will be a big money raiser for the government like the 50-state quarter program. They also hope the dollar pieces will rev up interest in the Sacagawea dollars, which have been little-used. The quarter program had raked in roughly $4 billion in revenues by its midpoint, said Becky Bailey,...

Columbus - A politically connected investment firm lost $215 million in Bureau of Workers' Compensation money, triggering an agency shake-up, a wide-ranging criminal investigation and calls by Democrats for Gov. Bob Taft's recall. Losses by the Pittsburgh-based MDL Capital Management dwarf the estimated $10 million to $13 million missing from BWC's rare-coin investments and raise new questions about the abilities of former bureau administrator Jim Conrad, who initially soft-pedaled information that surfaced about the losing investments. Agency officials believe the losses are among the largest by a single money manager in BWC history, but emphasize that the $14 billion portfolio...

COLUMBUS — Federal and state authorities are pursuing criminal and civil charges against Tom Noe for allegedly misappropriating $10 million to $12 million from the state’s rare-coin investment. Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien said yesterday that he has “reason to believe” Mr. Noe, a prominent Toledo-area Republican fund-raiser and rare-coin dealer, has misappropriated “more than $10 million” in state assets. “I have reason to believe it is more than just missing assets or lost assets or otherwise,” said Mr. O’Brien, a Republican. “I have reason to believe there is actual misappropriation of state funds involved ... I’m talking about conversion...

Coin discovery sheds light on Turkic civilization Thursday, March 10, 2005 Göktürk find refutes claims that the Turkic peoples were merely plunderers and barbarians ANKARA - Turkish Daily News Ancient coins from the first known Turkic culture, the Göktürks, have been discovered during archeological excavations in Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, reported the Doðan News Agency. Associate Professor Yavuz Daloðlu, an instructor at Dokuz Eylül University who presented the findings of historian Dr. Babayar Gaybullah to the public, stated that claims asserting that the Göktürk people did not have any structure of governance have been proven wrong by this discovery. He...

Colorado Springs, CO (PRWEB) January 28, 2005 -- After decades of seeking possible answers about a mysterious UFO-like design on a 17th century French copper coin, a prominent numismatic expert says it remains just that: an unidentified flying object. After a half-century of research, the design has defied positive identification by the numismatic community. "It was made in the 1680s in France and the design on one side certainly looks like it could be a flying saucer in the clouds over the countryside," said Kenneth E. Bressett of Colorado Springs, Colorado, a former President of the 32,000-member American Numismatic Association...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

WASHINGTON – The United States Mint is alerting consumers and the public about a new product whose television, print, and online advertisements incorrectly describe as a “legally authorized government issue” coin. This product, which purportedly commemorates the World Trade Center and the planned new Freedom Tower, is not a genuine United States coin or medal.

Coin discovery sparks treasure hunt in Norway August 02 2004 at 03:45PM Oslo - A surprise find of old Chinese and Roman coins on a mountain in the Gudbrandsdalen valley in central Norway has triggered gold fever in the region, reports said on Monday. Roald Nilsen made the lucky discovery in May when he was hiking with his dog in mountains bordering the valley, which has long been an important trade route and now is a popular location for tourists and hikers. The valley and its history were used as a backdrop in Henrik Ibsen's famed play Peer Gynt. No...

The US Mint is releasing a Ronald Reagan medal on June 16th and the medals are available to order now. To find the Ronald Reagan coin use the above link and select the Ronald Reagan coin in the lower left.

Halley's comet portrayed on ancient coin Heather Catchpole ABC Science Online Wednesday, 19 May 2004 Could the star shape on the king's crown be Halley's comet? A rare ancient coin may feature an early record of Halley's comet, researchers say. The coin features the head of the Armenian king Tigranes II the Great, who reigned from 95 to 55 BC. A symbol on his crown that features a star with a curved tail may represent the passage of Halley's comet in 87 BC, say the Armenian and Italian researchers. Their research will be published in Astronomy & Geophysics, a journal...

Rare Vatican (news - web sites) euros coins, sold for the first time outside the Vatican for security reasons, were snatched up within three hours after crowds rushed to buy them. AFP Photo In an office near St. Paul's basilica, the Vatican's Philatelic and Numismatic Office started selling the coins Friday morning at 7:30 am (0530 GMT). By 10:30 am, doors were closed with the last 200 buyers still inside. Many of the collectors who had come to buy the coins were disappointed to be shut-out after having waited in line since the night before. The coins, which feature the...

<p>SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled the design of California's new quarter Monday, which shows conservationist John Muir, a California condor and Yosemite National Park's Half Dome mountain on the coin's tails side.</p>
<p>The quarter commemorates California's Sept. 9, 1850, entry into the United States, and is the 31st 25-cent coin to be unveiled as part of a 10-year, 50-state quarters program conducted by the U.S. Mint. States reveal their quarters in honor of the order in which they ratified the U.S. Constitution and joined the union.</p>